This rack is a dream to install and remove from your hitch receiver, but locks securely. The rack is stable and has spent many hours on the highway carrying two adult mountain bikes and two kids bikes. It took a bit of time to figure out the right order and arrangement to get all four of our bikes to fit, but once that was figured out it handles all four no problem. Getting access to the back of our Dodge Caravan is a breeze with this rack. The only change I would make is to beef up the built in cable lock. If leaving my bikes on the rack for any period of time I supplement it with my Krypyonite cable lock. With four bikes on the rack our tail lights are obscured, so for longer trips I mount a set of magnetic tow lights to the roof of the van to avoid any concerns from police or other drivers.

Service and delivery comments:

We ordered this for pick-up while we were on vacation in Lake Placid. The sales associate on the phone was most helpful and the staff at the store assembled the rack and demonstrated how to use it. Great service.

I bought this for my 2011 Sienna. I really liked the fold and unfold option so that I can get into my trunk without having to unload the bikes. My first impression was that it's a bit heavy but I'm glad in a way cause it also means it's a good quality product. Setup and install took about 30 mins. Might need help if you are not use to lifting heavy items. Everything else worked out great but I have to say that this product will rub up against the door when it's opening if you do not push the rack a little bit to give room. Also watch out when you are swinging the rack out with a fully stacked rack. The handle bar could scratch you car. The particular vehicle that I have is a big car so that could be the reason for some of the issues but I say the benefits far out way the negatives... just need to be conscious of the little things. Price is a bit higher than I would have liked but there aren't that many choices out there with these kinds of options. Overall I would recommend it. Just remember to go over the rack each time you are about to use and you should be fine.

I purchased the Thule Apex Swing Away for my 2009 Toyota RAV 4. This vehicle has a rear-mounted spare tire which means that most bike carriers won't fit.

Using the Thule online chat option, I selected the Swing Away via EMS. The EMS experience was great; they confirmed the order quickly and installed it for me at no cost. VERY impressive.

The bike carrier itself is heavy and solidly built. However, the small cable attaching the "Hold Open Pin" to the carrier fell off in the carrier's very first use. I didn't lose the pin; gravity kept it in place. But the solder connecting the cable to the carrier was obviously not of good quality.

I had real trouble getting Thule to respond via email though I repeatedly filled out contact forms. In some cases, they simply didn't answer at all. Quite disappointing. I finally called them directly and they were able to (partially) resolve the problem.

So, on balance, it's a good solid unit. Loading and unloading bikes is easy and obvious. The bikes themselves stay firmly in place. However, it is troubling that one piece (the cable connecting the Hold Open Pin) fell off in the very first use. On the upside, that was several months ago, and the unit has otherwise held together nicely.

One key concern: Thule Customer Service was disappointing especially via email and the "contact us online" option. If you need to contact them, skip the online/email approach and telephone them directly.